Heritage Hotels

FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT HERITAGE HOTELS - PAGE 4

MUMBAI: Hospitality group Kamat Hotels (KHIL) is working on a strategic plan to set up 50 hotel properties in five-star, four-star and fort segments by 2012 at an estimated investment of Rs 500 crore, a top company official said. "As part of our expansion plans, we plan to open 41 VITS (4-star luxury brand) properties in the next five years. We will launch the VITS hospitality in Ahmedabad, Aurangabad, Baroda, Belgaum, Chinchwad, Hubli, Kolhapur, ... and 20 more locations in the next five years," KHIL Executive Chairman and Manging Director Vithal Kamat said.

With an increasing number of travellers looking for experience with a difference, heritage hotels in the country are gaining popularity. The tourist is in search of destinations which bring out a country's heritage and culture. Here is a pick of the lesser-known heritage hotels from various parts of the country which are unique in their architecture and ambiance. Ajit Bhawan, The Pioneer IT'S an impressive red sandstone structure with arched windows, carved balconies and cupolas.

If Pondicherry is a French replica, Goa is a slice of Portugal and good ol' Bombay, Darjeeling, Simla and Mussoorie bear their very British legacy with elan. From Jehangir's time, India opened up to varied foreign architectural styles -- German gables, Dutch roofs, Swiss timbering, Romance arches and Tudor casements that blended with ethnic embellishments. So we got everything from Venetian-Gothic to Indo-Saracenic. Luckily, for those of us who do not have these historic homes to treasure, there are heritage hotels not too far away that offer vignettes of those foreign influences even today...

NEW DELHI: The hospitality sector is making the most of the boom in tourist traffic. The average occupancy rate of hotels has gone up by 9% to 59.7 % in 2003-04 against 54.8% in 2002-03, even as average room rate has soared by 34.1% ? from Rs 2,004 to Rs 2,689 ? in the same period. Average occupancy for hotels in 2003-04 with more than 150 rooms was 70%, for hotels with 50 to 150 rooms it was 62% and 55% for hotels with less than 50 rooms, says a survey of 1,109 hotels, housing 60,773 rooms, across 30 cities by Federation of Hotels and Restaurant Associations of India, in association with HVS International India.

NEW DELHI: The hotel industry is up in arms against the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) tariff order, which categorises hotels with ratings of three-star and above, heritage hotels and any hotel having more than 50 rooms as 'commercial' subscribers, resulting in widely fluctuating charges per television channel on a monthly basis. The industry is demanding parity with one and two-star hotels in conditional access system (CAS) areas, which, according to Trai order, enjoy the monthly tariff of Rs 5 per channel for each room.

CHENNAI: Even as Chennai awaits the entry of more international biggies (Empee-Hilton, Leela Kempinski, Grand Hyatt) to dot its hospitality skyline, its neighbour Puducherry is getting ready to see some action in the hotel segment. The union territory's room inventory is expected to double to 2,000 (across categories) in the next two years with a total investment of around Rs 400 crore. The weekend tourist destination has seen a major surge in tourist population in the last couple of years and things are expected to get even bigger in the next two years with a slew of new hotels in the pipeline.

India truly has some of the greatest resort hotels and locales in the world. They are a winning mix of great natural beauty, grand architecture and very often a rich historical heritage as well. Even if the hotels belong to a chain, they have a very compelling charm for the travel junkie. The problem is when the traveller (as opposed to the tourist) has demanding tastebuds too. India's resorts, heritage hotels and what-have-you all fall short most of the time. And they get away with it too, since food has never been promoted as an Indian talent.

JAIPUR: Heritage hotels have now covered more than a decade but the underlying theme of providing the majesty and luxuries of an era gone by makes a slow impact on heritage destination. Heritage Hotels Association of India came into being in 1990. A few palaces, forts and havelis became the founder members. And so started a legacy of preserving and reviving the rich heritage. The members to the association, now 149 strong, are gathering in Jaipur on September 14 to assess the progress made in the last decade.

NEW DELHI: Once considered as big draws among foreigners, heritage hotels are now equally getting popular with domestic travellers. It is estimated that domestic tourists travelling to the heritage properties would witness a huge jump this year. Last year, 20 to 25% domestic travellers stayed at these heritage properties. This year, it is expected to cross 35 to 40% as first six months has seen a jump of more than 20%. Says Sunil Sikka head marketing & business development, WelcomHeritage Hotels: "There has been a spurt in domestic tourists to heritage hotels.

NEW DELHI: Arvind Singh Mewar of Udaipur's erstwhile royal family, who runs heritage hotels chain HRH Group of Hotels, plans to raise Rs 150 crore to expand its capacity in the mid-market segment. "Mid market is where the new opportunity is for us," Mewar says, adding that HRH Group will double the number of rooms in its properties in the next two-three years. "We are open to private equity investment in the company," he says. The company will tap debt and internal accruals to fund the expansion.